The 1973 Detroit Lions season was their 44th in the league. Don McCafferty, who served as an assistant under Don Shula during Shula's stint as head coach of the Baltimore Colts, and who as head coach himself coached the Colts to a Super Bowl V victory over the Dallas Cowboys, would replace Joe Schmidt as head coach. However, the team would still fail to improve and get better on their previous season's output of 8–5–1, finishing a mediocre 6–7–1.[1] The football team had missed the playoffs for the third in a row straight season.
NFL draft
Notes
- Detroit traded TE Craig Cotton and its first-round selection (19th) to Chicago in exchange for Chicago's first- and third-round selections (17th and 58th).
- Detroit traded DB Al Clark to Los Angeles in exchange for the Rams' third-round selection (75th).
- Detroit traded its second-round selection in 1972 to Atlanta in exchange for CB Rudy Redmond, RB Sonny Campbell and Atlanta's fourth-round selection (91st).
- Detroit traded its fifth-round selection (123rd) to Washington in exchange for TE John Hilton.
- Detroit traded its sixth-round selection (148th) to St. Louis in exchange for LB Rick Ogle.
- Detroit traded DT Jerry Rush to Cleveland in exchange for the Browns' eighth-round pick (203rd).
Roster
| 1973 Detroit Lions roster
|
| Quarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers
Tight ends
|
|
Offensive linemen
Defensive linemen
|
|
Linebackers
Defensive backs
Special teams
|
|
Reserve lists
rookies in italics
|
Schedule
| Week
|
Date
|
Opponent
|
Result
|
Record
|
Venue
|
Attendance
|
Recap
|
| 1
|
September 16
|
at Pittsburgh Steelers
|
L 10–24
|
0–1
|
Three Rivers Stadium
|
48,913
|
Recap
|
| 2
|
September 23
|
at Green Bay Packers
|
T 13–13
|
0–1–1
|
Lambeau Field
|
55,495
|
Recap
|
| 3
|
|
Atlanta Falcons
|
W 31–6
|
1–1–1
|
Tiger Stadium
|
45,599
|
Recap
|
| 4
|
October 7
|
Minnesota Vikings
|
L 9–23
|
1–2–1
|
Tiger Stadium
|
49,549
|
Recap
|
| 5
|
October 14
|
at New Orleans Saints
|
L 13–20
|
1–3–1
|
Tulane Stadium
|
57,810
|
Recap
|
| 6
|
October 21
|
Baltimore Colts
|
L 27–29
|
1–4–1
|
Tiger Stadium
|
48,058
|
Recap
|
| 7
|
October 28
|
Green Bay Packers
|
W 34–0
|
2–4–1
|
Tiger Stadium
|
43,616
|
Recap
|
| 8
|
November 4
|
San Francisco 49ers
|
W 30–20
|
3–4–1
|
Tiger Stadium
|
49,531
|
Recap
|
| 9
|
November 11
|
at Minnesota Vikings
|
L 7–28
|
3–5–1
|
Metropolitan Stadium
|
47,911
|
Recap
|
| 10
|
November 18
|
at Chicago Bears
|
W 30–7
|
4–5–1
|
Soldier Field
|
48,625
|
Recap
|
| 11
|
November 22
|
Washington Redskins
|
L 0–20
|
4–6–1
|
Tiger Stadium
|
46,807
|
Recap
|
| 12
|
December 2
|
at St. Louis Cardinals
|
W 20–16
|
5–6–1
|
Busch Memorial Stadium
|
44,982
|
Recap
|
| 13
|
December 9
|
Chicago Bears
|
W 40–7
|
6–6–1
|
Tiger Stadium
|
41,729
|
Recap
|
| 14
|
|
at Miami Dolphins
|
L 7–34
|
6–7–1
|
Miami Orange Bowl
|
53,375
|
Recap
|
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Season summary
Week 1
| Scoring summary
|
| Quarter
|
Time
|
Drive
|
Team
|
Scoring information
|
Score
|
| Plays
|
Yards
|
TOP
|
DET
|
PIT
|
| 2
|
|
|
|
|
Steelers
|
11-yard field goal by Roy Gerela
|
0
|
3
|
| 3
|
|
|
|
|
Steelers
|
Bradshaw 1-yard touchdown run, Gerela kick good
|
0
|
10
|
| 3
|
|
|
|
|
Lions
|
Jessie 84-yard touchdown reception from Landry, Mann kick good
|
7
|
10
|
| 3
|
|
|
|
|
Lions
|
40-yard field goal by Mann
|
10
|
10
|
| 4
|
|
|
|
|
Steelers
|
McMakin 24-yard touchdown reception from Bradshaw, Gerela kick good
|
10
|
17
|
| 4
|
|
|
|
|
Steelers
|
Shanklin 6-yard touchdown reception from Bradshaw, Gerela kick good
|
10
|
24
|
| "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football.
|
10
|
24
|
|
Week 14
| Game information
|
|
First quarter
Second quarter
- MIA – Garo Yepremian 27-yard field goal – Dolphins 17–0
- MIA – Paul Warfield 16-yard pass from Bob Griese (Garo Yepremian kick) – Dolphins 24–0
- MIA – Paul Warfield 4-yard pass from Bob Griese (Garo Yepremian kick) – Dolphins 31–0
Third quarter
- MIA – Garo Yepremian 28-yard field goal – Dolphins 34–0
Fourth quarter
|
Lions
- Bill Munson
8/17, 73 Yds, INT
- Steve Owens
27 Rush, 113 Yds, TD
6 Rec, 56 Yds
Dolphins
- Bob Griese
11/15, 141 Yds, 4 TD
- Larry Csonka
10 Rush, 51 Yds
- Paul Warfield
6 Rec, 103 Yds, 4 TD
|
|
Standings
References
|
|---|
|
| Franchise | |
|---|
| Records | |
|---|
| Stadiums | |
|---|
| Culture | |
|---|
| Lore | |
|---|
| Rivalries | |
|---|
| Division championships (10) | |
|---|
| League championships (4) | |
|---|
| Media | |
|---|
| Current league affiliations | |
|---|